Last summer, the Ile-de-France region and Publicis Consultants increased their partnership with a campaign called “Not the Ref”. To raise awareness without being judgemental, they tried to start a dialogue with young people on a taboo topic: porn.
You can read all the stories we published in English in our special section Strategies in English.
In 2022, 46% of young people under 17 have already been exposed to porn and 53% explained they watched pornographic videos in order to learn things, according to a poll for the Ile-de-France region. This porn consumption has exploded during the covid plague and its lockdowns, especially among people under 18. This is why the regional government has decided to act to raise awareness among parents and their children on the issue of pornography.
In 2022, the Ile-de-France region and its agency, Publicis Consultants, opened an Instagram page called “Not the ref” – meaning it is not the reference –to understand the way young people consume porn and to start a conversation with them. After the message has been identified, the agency made a 360-degree communication platform to promote “Not the Ref”.
“This year, we have imagined a second round of communication especially targeting high school students. Our aim is to raise awareness about porn violence, what this myth could cause and help young people understand that this is mostly “fake”. We don’t want it to become a standard”, said Laurent Glépin, vice-president of Publicis Consultants.
But talking about porn, especially with young people, is not an easy thing. The subject remains taboo. So instead of creating another moment of discomfort, the agency wanted to embody this campaign with a Youtuber with a big community among young people. They chose Théodort.
“He was immediately enthusiastic about the project. In addition to having a strong audience, Théodort has a freedom of speech. Based on a creative direction we proposed, his team conceived and drafted the project. He even invited his own production company and director Hadrien Genest for the shooting. We do not categorize porn as bad, but we want to remind that it's not real”, added the vice-president of Publicis Consultants.
Maintain a certain balance
In just three days, in a studio, the whole team created a campaign that looked like a short film. It shows the backstage of a porn film shooting with the Youtuber as the main character, super excited to play in this kind of movies. But very quickly, he is disappointed. The actresses’ orgasms are on demand, the director, Quentin Tarantanal, piles up clichés, and physical standards are wildly unrealistic...
The viewer sees behind the scenes through the eyes of Théodort. "We had quite a few discussions with Théodort to adjust things, but he never went too far in what he said. The challenge was to maintain a certain balance so that humor doesn't betray the message. There is no complacency with this industry", explained Perrine Danmanville, communication director of the IDF region.
This campaign with a rather enticing title, "I acted in a porn movie", was released on the YouTuber's channel on July 30. Why this schedule ? "Because it's during holidays that porn is overconsumed", reminds Publicis Consultants.
Qualitative success
In just two days, the film has been watched 800,000 times. A month later, it had reached 1.2 million viewers. "In addition to being quantitative, the success is also qualitative. The comments under the video are positive. People mostly agreed that our spot was neither lurid nor caricatural. Even the regional family planning organization found it great", said Laurent Glépin.
Public authorities have a role to play in this awareness, particularly in terms of public health. "Obviously, a video is not enough to solve the problem. We need to continue to spread the message that porn is not a user manual for sex education. The average age of first access to porn is ten years old ! Just like on the subject of mental health issues, we, as a public authority, try to initiate things, so that others can follow in our foosteps", explained Perrine Danmanville.
